Oregon State fans have traveled far by plane and automobile to make it to El Paso to see the Beavers play in a third consecutive bowl game, this time playing in the Sun Bowl.
Beaver fans descended upon the El Paso Convention Center for a night of celebration ahead of their bowl game matchup against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
While plenty of fans enjoyed the bowl game festivities this week, including mariachi music and a battle of the bands between OSU and Notre Dame marching bands, fans are ready to cheer on the Beavers on game day in Sun Bowl Stadium.
Many of the fans in attendance are veteran Beaver fans who have been to various Oregon State bowl games over the years, whether that is as a member of the band or as a fan, but for some fans, this is their first time cheering on the Beavers in a bowl game atmosphere.
Rich Luna has attended many bowl games in the past, mainly serving as a reporter at the Sun Bowl.
“I used to be a sports writer myself, so I covered a number of bowl games throughout the years, including the Sun Bowl, as I’m from El Paso,” Rich said. “Always exciting, a great experience for the fans, teams, and city. And I’m proud of El Paso. Being a native El Pasoan, I think El Paso does a great job putting on a bowl game for visitors. It’s a great experience for the band, so I think it is just a great thing.”
Eric Rubino, a 5th-year student from Oregon State University dawned a bright orange cowboy hat and has shown his support for the Beavers at past bowl games.
“I’ve been to the LA (Los Angeles) bowl too against Utah State,” Rubuno said. “The LA Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, and now the Sun Bowl.”
Rubino has attended every bowl game these past three years as a student, regardless of location.
Along with the bowl game memories, many Beaver fans, such as Rubino, have fond memories of the 38-34 rivalry series victory in the 2022 football season. Luna and Rubino mentioned that this game was one of their favorites to watch as fans at Oregon State.
For Gabe Klinger, a current student at Oregon State and former marching band member, the early struggles under former head coach Jonathan Smith and the scarcity of wins in the early years of Smith’s tenure as head coach.
“I was in the marching band from 2017-2022, and probably the best memory I have was our first home win since I got here which I believe was against Cal in 2019,” Klinger said. “It took them a while to win one, but seeing Reser light up like that was amazing.”
Many Oregon State fans have stuck with the Beavers through highs and lows in the football program, from the era of head coaches Dennis Erickson and Mike Riley to the years before Smith took over as head coach and unprecedented conference realignment.
The common consensus among Beaver fans throughout the El Paso Convention Center is that they would find a bowl game win to be gratifying to close the book on the 2023 football season with all the adversity that the program has faced this season.
“I think that it would show conferences like the BIG-12 that we are one of the better programs of the PAC-12, and beating a well-known team like Notre Dame could be really good for our resume in terms of conference realignment,” Rubino said.
With the hope that the Beavers would end the season with one final victory, fans pooled their thoughts on the final score.
Luna predicted the game to be close but has the Beavers winning by seven.
Rubino thinks the game will be a high-scoring affair since both teams have to implement the use of many second-stringers due to the transfer portal eating into both starting lineups, as he thinks the final score will be 34-31, Beavers.
